


Something about december

by Inkkerfuffle



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adult life AU, Christmas fic, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff so much fluff, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-15
Updated: 2015-12-15
Packaged: 2018-05-06 23:03:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5434139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inkkerfuffle/pseuds/Inkkerfuffle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first steps into adulthood are difficult, especially if you consider all you left behind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Something about december

**Author's Note:**

> This is another grown up Adrinette fic. Picture them around 19 years old, just moved into their first apartment.

It had been a long, long week, and Adrien was glad to be finally heading home and resting for the weekend. To tell the truth, his mood was less than spectacular, and even though he had actively tried to not let his mood affect his home life, he was sure he had not been as successful as he’d hoped. He’d gone browsing to see what he could get Marinette for Christmas, but since the agency had yet to mail him his last check, everything seemed terribly, terribly expensive.  Sure, she would tell him it was okay. They had been living together for less than six months already, so their expenses had doubled lately, and they’d yet to buy a lot of household necessities. But still… he wanted to give her a good present for their first Christmas living together.

He’d seen a great artist’s set, filled with materials, pencils, pens in so many colors that he knew she would love. Hell, he'd seen her eyes sparkle when they'd walked by the shop one time. But the price tag had been something that had stopped him in his tracks. It was still such a new feeling to not be able to just buy whatever he wanted. And living with a budget, coupled with the fact that both of them had just started going to school, made everything more complicated and sometimes he just got… a little overwhelmed.

“I’m home!” he called out, shrugging off his coat and hanging it on the nail by the door. He stretched his arms over his head, trying to relieve some of the tension that had decided to make its home on his shoulders.

“Stay there!” she called out, and he heard her shuffling and running over him “Close your eyes!”

He stood in place, eyes closed and a confused look on his face. “ _Okaaay_ ,” he said, waiting for Marinette to come get him at the door.

Adrien heard her steps closing in “Hey Plagg!” She said “I left you some cheese in the kitchen. Ask Tikki, she’ll tell you where it is.” The kitten kwami greeted her enthusiastically and Adrien felt him float away towards the kitchen, his voice excited as he went towards Tikki.

Her hands touched his shoulders and tugged him down for a kiss. “Hi! Ah ah ah…don’t open them yet!” She chastised him and Adrien could  _hear_ the smile on her voice. He tried to pull her back in for another kiss, but she’d already moved away. 

“Not yet!” she said, laughter evident in her voice, “Come on, I want to show you something.” She led him carefully through their home, until they reached their destination. “Stay here for a second… keep your eyes closed!”  The blond stood around, battling the instinct to open his eyes to see justwhat she was doing, as Marinette shuffled around him, humming happily under her breath as she finished whatever it was she was up to. “Oh, crap,” she muttered, hurrying away to where he guessed was the wall and …scraping it?

Well, he was intrigued now. “What are you even doing?”

“Shh. You’ll see!” Marinette continued moving for a couple more seconds, and then flounced over to him. “Okay!” she exclaimed, “you can open your eyes now.”

He did as asked, and took a look around their living room. The first thing he saw was a ridiculous blanket fort, set in the middle of the room. They’d yet to get around to buying any actualfurniture for their living room, so Marinette had improvised with some old scraps of fabric she’d found on sale and whipped up some cushions and pillows to set on the floor for whenever their friends stopped by.  

Adrien kneeled in front of the entrance, and peered inside. Marinette had gathered all their sitting pillows and cushions and placed them on the ground, creating a perfect and soft, cuddling spot. She’d used the chairs as walls, draping some blankets on top of them to perfectly cocoon them inside. String lights were hung over the fort’s ceiling, and her computer was propped up on top of an empty box.

“Where did you even get all this?” he said, an amazed smile appearing on his face.

She grinned, “ _Maman_  dropped off some stuff earlier.” She motioned at the ornaments, “She said she’d accidentally bought too many decorations.” She rolled her eyes; fully aware that her mother would use any excuse to give them something to cheer up their apartment. “Also,” she continued “I know we’ve been really busy this week… so I figure it’s a nice date night withoutreally going anywhere.”

Well, it was the truth. First; Sabine would use that particular excuse to spoil them somehow. And Adrien also knew that if he was to look at the kitchen, the woman might have left some snacks or cookies and a couple ready meals stacked in their fridge. He was actually surprised that Sabine had eventried an excuse. 

Marinette was also right… school had been absolutely insane for the both of them and their biggest interaction had been during breakfast before they each left  for class, and at night before they slept. It was probably one more reason for his sour mood these past few days.

“That’s not all!” she said, and it was then when he realized just what she was wearing. Her top was hers, a simple pink pullover with long sleeves, it was the pants that drew his attentions. They were his favorite’s sweatpants, which absolutely were hanging on to dear life from her small frame. Her feet were absolutely hidden from view, since his legs were so much longer than hers.  Her fingers were also stained with something green, and she had a matching smudge on her face. It was endearing.

Marinette continued, her hands moving as she explained. “So, after I finished that… I thought of something else.” She pointed towards the wall besides the window that overlooked the street. Over there, there was a drawn in Christmas tree, made with green chalk; it definitely explained the smudges on her hands and face. She’d sketched it as realistic as she could, adding some details in other colors to give it depth. She’d pushed in some thumbtacks against the wall, using them to hang some small ornaments and hook a small set of string lights, which twinkled in different colors in the room.  

It was so absolutely silly, but it warmed his heart in ways he wouldn’t even be able to explain. It was his first Christmas away from the mansion, and while the mansion was always tastefully decorated, since they actually hired someone to do it, it wasn’t homey. No, it was not at all… and it really settled in his heart that he’d made the right choice, when the sight of a drawn in tree against a wall could cheer him up this much.

He grinned at her, feeling much better than he had when he’d gotten home, “We’re probably not getting our deposit back.” Adrien pointed out, as he wrapped his arms around her waist and resting his chin on top of her head.

“Eh. It’ll wash away.” she said, leaning back against his chest, a proud smile on her face. “It’s just chalk.”

He snorted, amused at her nonchalance. But hey, he expected to live here with her long enough to not care about deposits. “I love it.”

She beamed, “Good,” and reached over to kiss his lips lightly. “And oh, she also brought some treats.” she turned away from him, heading towards the kitchen area.

Adrien followed, watching from a small steps back as Marinette clearly struggled with the pants’ length. He reached over to tug them lightly down her hips. “These are mine, you know…”

The young woman laughed and swatted away at his hands. “I was cold.” she explained, “And, you left them on top of the bed. It’s your own fault, really.”

He snorted, his fingers ghosting across her hips, “I think I might want them back… now.” his finger hooked on the waistband, as a playful grin appeared on his face.

She laughed, squirming away from him, as a mischievous look appeared on her face as well, and she swatted at his face lightly, successfully smudging his face with chalk residue. She grinned, her face devoid of any sort of apology. “Oops.”

It was war. He sputtered, rubbing at his face as she laughed at him, succeeding only in spreading the color across his face. “I’m definitely taking them back now.” He reached for her, and Marinette squealed in laughter as she escaped, pulling the legs up with her hands to uncover her feet, and hiding on the opposite side of the kitchen counter that separated the kitchen area from the rest of the living room.

The couple circled the counter slowly, each of them waiting for the other to make a mistake to make their move. Marinette had speed and agility on her side, so when Adrien made a false start she took the chance and ran the opposite way, her feet thudding lightly on the wooden floor.

Adrien, however had a very important thing going for him. He was taller, therefore… longer limbs. Also, he was wearing shoes, and Marinette was wearing fluffy socks and pants far too long for her legs. He was betterprepared. He followed when she ran past him and reached for her waist when he saw the chance, pulling her off the ground and towards him.

“Noo!” Marinette laughed, feet dangling from the ground as he spun her, laughing as well. He pulled her up and carried her towards the living room. “Put me down!” she demanded, squirming in his arms.

“Nope!” Adrien kneeled down on the floor, letting her down in front of the fort’s entrance, “I’m taking you into my cave.”

“You are such a dork.” Marinette said, crawling inside the fort with ease and switching on some of the battery powered lights, casting a dim light around them. “Besides,” she said, sitting cross legged as she watched in crawl in “I made it. It’s my cave.”

Adrien grinned and crawled over her, advancing on her until she finally let herself fall on her back, his face hovering over hers as he supported his weight on his shoulders. “Maybe I am… but you’re not complaining,” he said, nuzzling his face against her neck as he began placing delicate kisses against her skin, “And it’s my cave now, I’m taking over it.”

She was  _definitely_ not complaining, as she wrapped her arms around his neck, tilting her head to the side to allow him as much room as he could possibly want. “Shush,” she said, her fingers trailing on his back, humming pleasantly, before they cupped his face, bringing it back to hers for a kiss.

It had been far too many days since they’d had time to themselves like this.

Her lips were warm, and they tasted of peppermint and hot chocolate, but most importantly of  _home._ He nudged her lips with his, humming pleasantly when she licked at his lower lip and pulled him closer to her; her hands running through his hair. He let his hand trail down, feeling the warmth of her body pressed against his, as he finally let his hand trail down, gripping on to her waist, hip and back, mapping out her curves with reverent touches. One of her foot dragged down the back of his legs, and his hand slid down her hips, gripping her leg and hiking up over his hip.

His fingers snuck under the hem of her shirt, his sour mood long forgotten by now, as the prospect of breaking in the fort appeared. He tugged it up her ribs and Marinette let go of him to sit up, allowing him to pull the shirt over her head, leaving her in a pink cami and his oversized sweatpants. He busied himself with her neck again, "Wearing. Too. Many. Layers.” he mumbled against her skin, grinning between kisses.

“It was cold.” she reminded him, pulling at his shirt, “Your turn now.”

Adrien reached for his shirt, pulling it over his head and throwing it over his shoulder with such bad luck that it completely disestablished the precariously perched laptop behind them. The seating stool stumbled on its spot and Adrien scrambled to catch it before it fell on the ground. He managed to save it, but not without falling awkwardly on his back, hissing at the contact of the cold floor against his bare skin.

Marinette crawled towards him, taking the laptop from his hands, a concerned look on her face. “Are you okay?” she asked, putting the computer on a safe spot and turning towards her boyfriend.

Adrien was laying still, a frown on his face. “That was a mood killer.” He muttered. There went the idea of breaking in the fort.

She snorted at his pouting, offering her hand to pull him back towards the cushions “Come on,” she told him, amusement evident on her face, “Let’s watch a movie.” She sat back on her heels, opening the laptop and placing it back on the box.

Adrien settled in again, and waited for Marinette to hit play on the movie, not even bothering to put his shirt back on, wrapping his arm around her once she snuggled up to his side. He pulled one of the blankets on top of them, and turned his attention to the screen.

The movie had barely begun when the lights outside of their fort flickered and turned off, and her computer’s light dimmed considerably; a sure sign that it was working solely on its battery power.  Marinette sat up, hitting pause and Adrien peered outside of their fort.

“Well, that was unexpected.” he said, before nodding towards one of the string lights that was still on “how are those still on?”

“Battery operated.” She explained, frowning at the computer before shutting it softly. “I bet its Monsieur Vincent from across the hall.” she muttered, blue eyes narrowed as she crawled back to Adrien, snuggling against his side again. “I saw him carrying another box into his apartment again.”

Adrien raised one eyebrow. “More toy trains?”

“Probably.” she answeered “I have no idea how they actually have room left.”

“His wife is going to go murder him then.” he said, not even making an effort to move. They had “Do you think the power will be back tonight?”

“With the way they handle things here…it’s anyone’s guess, really.” She paused, pursuing her lips for a second before continuing, “We should reallystart buying candles for emergencies.”

“We do have candles,” Adrien said, “Those ones you keep in the bathroom.” But yes, they were really unprepared for emergencies. And this incident had actually happened at least two times in the months they’d been living here. And always because of those damned trains.

“Plagg hates those.” Marinette pointed out, “remember last time?”

Ah yes. He remembered. It was yet another quirk from his kwami. Stinking up the whole home with Camembert? No problem, but if they lit up some scented cinnamon candles? It was somehow too much.

“Watching the movie won’t work now,” she pointed out, knowing that the battery was not going to last through the whole thing, “but we could just stay here for a while… It’s nice and warm.”

He hummed his approval, and Marinette curled up against him, closing her eyes as she relaxed. “How was school today?” She asked,

“It was… okay.” he said, “I’ll have a lot of get some reading done in advance though… I got booked for right after new year.” That was a small relief, to tell the truth; he was going to get paid in advance for that one… but it was still going to be after Christmas. Which still left him with the problem of justwhat he was going to get her for Christmas.

Last Christmas, it had not been a problem at all, he was still living with his father, and therefore he still had access to a great deal of luxuries that made gift picking a very easy task. Marinette still wore the delicate necklace he’d gotten her. He could see it now, dangling from her neck, the little charm glinting against her collarbones. As for this year; he still had no idea what he’d be able to get… everything that was just perfect, everything that had Marinette’s name written all over… he could no longer afford.

The whole concept was still hard to grasp.

They fell into a restful silence; his hand was splayed across her torso, and he was taking full advantage of the fact that her cami had ridden up, his fingers massaging the skin of her waist and hips softly, the tip of his fingers pressing lightly as he hummed peacefully, eyes closed as he’d finally reached relaxation. 

Marinette smiled, familiar with the situation. Granted, it had taken her a several months after the beginning of their relationship to realize just he was doing. Her  _overeager_ brain usually went stright into the gutter and it only left her sexually frustrated and confused when he began touching her skin and promptly fallen asleep. 

But now, she already recognized his behavior for what it was. Her silly cat was  _kneading_ on her. It usually happened when he was really tired, or like now… when he was visibly stressed about something. Marinette would never mention it to him, knowing how Adrien felt a little self conscious about his  _feline_ behavior. But It wasn't a hard thing to do, since she found it absolutely adorable, and she was extremely happy to let him pet her until they both fell asleep.

The lights flickered back on for an instant, and they both perked up, but the darkness returned before they could get truly excited about the power being back. “I knew there was a reason this building was as cheap as it was.” She muttered.

He snorted and resumed his kneading, eyes closing as Marinette rested her head back on his shoulder, closing her eyes as well. 

Marinette was aware that their life was  _difficult._ They’d both left the comforts of their previous homes to start building something together.  Granted, Adrien had given up way more comforts than Marinette could even begin to list; and she knew that he did it gladly; but sometimes… she wondered. Did he regret leaving with her? Knowing what his father had wanted of him, he would probably be living in the United States, or England, following the path Gabriel Agreste had designed for him. His living conditions would definitely be better than this, probably in the most exclusive living district of whatever city Gabriel preferred. Because,  _honestly,_ they were currently cuddling inside a blanket fort, built in the middle of their bare living room in a building that had such  _bad electric wiring_ that had probably blown another fuse box. That kind of thing rarely happened on Marinette’s old house, and she figured that it  _never_ happened in the Agreste Mansion.

Add to that, that they budget was extremely tight this month. There was a reason they still didn't have enough furniture in their home, and why they'd decided against _any_ decorations. Their home mainly had some storage furniture, a bed and some chairs for their mismatched dining set (which doubled as a _desk)._   Adding to that the books they both used for school,  _and_ the materials Marinette needed for her projects at school; their meager budget was stretched as much as they could get it to. 

It was difficult, sure, Marinette was beggining to figure out the bargains for whatever they needed to buy. And the fact that Tom and Sabine loved helping them out, whether it was with food or with some random gifts they brought... it helped. If only to make her and Adrien feel better. But she knew things would improve, after all... she'd started picking up some shifts at a nearby cafe, Alya set up a small shop online for her to sell some small designs and Adrien still worked on photoshoots. It was still difficult, but they'd make it work.

It still didn't help her with the awkward feeling that he regretted it sometimes. He'd just given up  _so_ much. 

"Adrien?” 

“Hmm?” he hummed, his fingers still tracing softly across her skin.

“Are you okay?” She asked, shifting to turn worried blue eyes up at him. “I know you’ve been having a bad week…I can  _tell.”_  Marinette paused for a second, biting her lower lip as she pondered what else to say, “I just… you looked like you could use a little  _pick me up,_  so I planned all of this… but then movie night was pretty much destroyed by our crazy neighbors and the terrible wiring in our building.”

Adrien felt a small weight on his chest. He hadn’t thought it was that noticeable. “I… I was a little bit stressed,” he conceded, “But I didn’t want to bring it  _home._ There’s no point in you worrying too! _”_

“Well, I worry anyway!” she exclaimed, tapping one finger on his chest lightly, “Silly cat, we’re in this together. I want you to be happy here!”

Adrien sighed. “I am!” he told her, feeling the dam finally bursting open and laying it all in front of her. “It’s just that… Christmas is right around the corner and… “He hesitated, knowing fully well what she was going to say to him.

“And?”

“I can’t afford anything I want to give you.”

 _That was it?_ “Adri… You know I don’t  _need_  presents, right?” she trailed off, sighing as she pondered just what to say. “I'm... If you're happy here, then that's all I want!" Marinette sighed, running her fingers over his face, brushing his hair back, "Do you… do you miss how things were  _before?”_

The dim lighting that the string lights provided allowed her to see the thoughtful expression on his face. “Before?”

“Before… all of  _this_.” she said, her head resting on his shoulder, worried blue eyes looking at his face. 

Adrien exhaled, his lips pursued in thought. “Yes and no.” There was no response from Marinette, so he continued. “I liked not having to think about stuff like this.” he explained, “Bills got paid on their own, things got fixed or replaced and I never really thought about it.” Nathalie usually made sure that his material needs were covered, his closet was always filled with an alarming amount of high label clothing, and if he ever wanted for something when he was out on his own, he had a credit card. And honestly? He had never really made an actual effort to test just how what his credit card limit was.

So yes, if he still had access to that; they would be living in a far better apartment; probably with a view to be envied. It’d be big enough for them Marinette to have a small studio to work on her designs, and a place for him to study with no disturbances. But taking control of his life, meant breaking from under his father’s control. And that meant giving up  _all_ the perks that his father could offer. The Agreste money was one of them.

So he continued, “I wish that I still had money to buy that set of pencils you liked.” he said, remembering the expression on her face as they walked past the store window; “That we could buy an actual sofa to lounge on when we get home, a real dining table and desks." Marinette had propped up her head on her hand, and was looking at him, biting her lower lip thoughtfully, but said nothing, so Adrien continued. “But even like this, this crappy building feels more like home than my father’s house ever did.” he said, “So no, I don’t really miss  _before._ I’m… I just wish that it was easier sometimes.”

"It'll get easier, you know." She said, her fingers trailing over his face affectionately. A determined expression crossed her face and Marinette perked up. "Alright." She smiled, looking just as she did when she finally figured out the right course of action to defeat an akuma. "Here's my plan. We’re going to be setting some ground rules. We’re not spending more than five euro on each other’s presents. And… they  _have_  to be silly.”

“Twenty.”

Her eyes narrowed, but there was a pleased edge to her expression, clearly pleased to be reaching an understanding. “ _Ten_.”

“Fifteen.” he countered, narrowing his eyes playfully at her, ideas already popping up in his brain. Thankfully the Ladybug and Chat Noir merchandise had a very varied range.

“Deal.” She said, extending her hand to shake on it, a bright smile on her face. “But no going over it!” ”

He felt lighter now, and his arms tightened slightly around her, crushing her to his chest. Marinette smiled and wrapped her arms around him, presseing a light kiss to his shoulder.

"It  _will_  get better, you know?” She said, snuggling on his shoulder, “Years from now, we’ll probably laugh at our very, very crappy apartment.”

He snorted, his hands beginning to move against her skin again. “And your drawn tree on the wall?”

“We will  _treasure_  my tree.” she said, her index poking at his chest. “ _Treasure.”_   

He was sure they would.  


End file.
